Principal, Software Engineer

Walmart Walmart · Retail · Bangalore, KA, India

This role is for a Principal Software Engineer focused on enterprise architecture and strategy within the Returns engineering organization at Walmart. The position requires deep expertise in modern Java, distributed systems, data and messaging, cloud technologies, and microservices. The engineer will define technical vision, lead adoption of new frameworks, resolve complex system bottlenecks, collaborate with leadership, mentor engineers, and present architectural designs. The role emphasizes building highly scalable, resilient backend systems for massive business units like eCommerce and Fulfillment.

What you'd actually do

  1. Define the technical vision and architect sophisticated, highly scalable, and ultra-high-performing backend systems.
  2. Spearhead the adoption of modern frameworks, advanced microservices architectures, and hybrid cloud strategies to build globally distributed solutions.
  3. Partner intimately with Enterprise Architects, Product Leadership, and VP-level stakeholders to define long-term technical roadmaps, drive strategic innovations, and align engineering execution with business goals.
  4. Act as a technical multiplier across the organization.
  5. Present groundbreaking architectural designs, industry trends, and strategic technical solutions to large organizational groups and executive leadership, acting as an industry thought leader.

Skills

Required

  • Engineering Degree (B.E/BTech/MTech/MS) in Computer Science or related field
  • 12-15+ years of deep, hands-on experience in software engineering and system architecture
  • Master-level proficiency in modern Java (Java 11/17+), JVM internals, advanced concurrency, multi-threading, and performance tuning
  • Proven track record of designing, building, and operating massive-scale, globally distributed systems
  • Deep authoritative knowledge of scalability, fault tolerance, and high-availability patterns
  • Master-level command over Distributed Databases (NoSQL/SQL), asynchronous messaging, and event-driven architectures (e.g., Kafka)
  • Extensive, hands-on architectural experience with Cloud technologies (Azure/GCP/AWS), advanced microservices patterns, Kubernetes, and container orchestration
  • Profound understanding of CS Fundamentals, Data Structures, and Algorithms
  • Ability to define and enforce SDLC best practices, CI/CD strategies, and strict operational guidelines for multiple teams
  • Highly influential communication skills with a proven track record of effectively articulating complex technical strategies to executive leadership and driving cross-functional alignment

What the JD emphasized

  • massive-scale business units
  • massive-scale, globally distributed systems
  • billions of events
  • extreme scale